On the Road

Berlin-Düsseldorf-Köln-Brussels-Paris-Perpignan-Paris-Strasbourg-Karlsruhe-Berlin

For those of you who follow my instagram you will have seen just how crazy the past 11 days have been. My original plan was to meet my family for a holiday in the South of France and I thought the cheapest option would be to grab an Interrail pass and catch numerous trains down south and then back up again. It didn't turn out as cheap as I hoped (blogrant to come) but I definitely enjoyed just sitting back and watching the world whizz by my window.

Back in the Dorf

After an 8 hour coach ride, I found myself back in the Dorf. It felt good and strangely familiar. It was one of those moments where it feels like you never left, yet at the same time you become aware of how much has changed since you last trod the cobbled streets of the Altstadt. I've realised that the second half of my year abroad has been full of completely different challenges, namely trying to feel known despite moving city every couple of months. I am so grateful for the time I spent here in Düsseldorf, for the friends I made, for the wonderful job at the theatre, for Woyton and the friendly baristas (who just made me a smiley face coffee - yay!) and for the chance to make a German home for myself. Berlin is exciting, but it can often overwhelm you with choice and its indefatigable artistic energy. You want to see everything, capture everything, create something, try all the coffee shops, meet all the cool people and it gets exhausting. Düsseldorf is slower, calmer, less ragged around the edges and much, much easier to move around. 

As I write this , sitting in my favourite Woyton spot, bantering with my Barista boys the sun is shining and my heart is full. I am finally acknowledging what has come to pass, finally recognising my achievements over the past year and gladly accepting the fact that, in four weeks time,  this adventure will be over. I am proud of myself and breathe a sigh of relief. 

Fiona/Ellie-Cam

For my 21st Birthday my dear friend Fiona sent me a disposable camera. She had already used up half of the film and I was instructed to use the other half. The result was a collaboration of moments, carefully selected to remind of how wonderful and varied our lives are. I love how photographs remind us of things we've done, because it's so easy to forget what things really looked like and how they really were. These shots make me miss the people in them a lot. I'm so fortunate to have met such an incredible bunch of individuals this year - I only hope it continues. I've deliberately mixed the photos around, some are obviously mine, some are not, but I hope you enjoy these little snapshots of our lives on this Thursday afternoon.

Final Week

Can you believe that it's my last week in Düsseldorf?

I sort of can and sort of can't, in the same way that I'm sort of ready to go but sort of want to stay.

This week is going to filled to the brim with goodbyes, packing, cleaning, sorting, crying and laughing. It'll be exhausting, but satisfying. I want to tie the ends up well, I want to say goodbye and thank you in the best way possible. Not many people get to have THIS much fun on their year abroad.

This place has been so good to me, each season has been so full, each moment so poignant with excitement and homesickness. However, these things have to come to an end at some point and for the first time since being here, I'm feeling that kick of wanderlust again, that itchy-feet-I-need-a-new-adventure kinda feeling, so I know that the time is right to move on.

This time next week will be the first day of my month-long language school in Florence. Yes folks, I'm moving to Italy and I'm so ready.

Kürbis Party

 A couple of weeks ago now, Franziska and I had a Kürbis (Squash/Pumpkin) party. It was just the two of us and that beloved Pumpkin, spruced up by a spot of red wine, Suppengemuse (soup vegetables) and excellent conversation. Her flat is so interesting. She lives with two Art students who are studying at the Kunstakadamie so everyone spare piece of wall is filled with their projects and creations. It was such a beautiful evening, sitting there surrounded by creativity, listening to BOY, eating great food, picking at chocolate and watching a German talk show. We were hoping to make meals together a weekly ordeal, but alas life has gotten in the way and we have found ourselves torn apart by rehearsal schedules and workshop dates. Such is the life of those who work in the theatre.  However, I am certain that we will return to the arty flat soon for another beautiful evening together. In the mean time, we shall have to make-do with our regular cappuccinos in the theatre cafe (we get a discount, so we gotta make the most out of it!)

Walking Home

My friend Fiona challenged me to blog about a journey I take everyday. I loved the idea because I see some pretty beautiful things on my way to and from things. This particular journey isn't one that I take on a regular basis, but it's one I took during my 'sick week' in order to get my strength back. It was the longest walk I did and took about an hour, but the weather was so gorgeous and I felt so happy to be in the fresh air I hardly noticed the time go by. I walked all the way from the Altstadt back to my flat in Unterrath listening to some gorgeous tunage and snapping happily away with my lil Canon digi-cam.Walking alone is honestly one of my favourite things to do, it prepares me for the day or for the upcoming activity and helps me to debrief on the way home. It makes me feel alive and infinite and at one with the world around me. I particularly love walking home in Autumn because the sky switches from a dramatic grey, to sunny orange, to cornflower blue and the surroundings change colours accordingly. It's such a rich time of the year.

Travel Goals/Fears/Dreams

Seeing as this year is predominately about full-ermersion in other language in order to reach near-native fluency and secondly a personal adventure, it's been imperative that I document it well. I have a journal, a blog and vocabulary book: so far so good. I have thought a lot about my fears and my dreams for this season of my life and right at the forefront is this crazy borrower sized version of myself screaming 'I DON'T WANT TO WASTE THIS OPPORTUNITY!' In order to combat this fear, I had to dig a little deeper and think about how you can measure waste. I decided to write down everything that I wanted to achieve this year and then prioritise the things that I can ONLY do in Germany. For example, getting better at playing the piano went off the list, because as much as I want to play it well, I have the rest of my life to practice. However, reading German newspapers regularly and going to German plays are things that can only be done properly in Deutschland. I am finding this prioritisation incredibly useful. My life tends to be a bit full, which leaves me feeling frustrated because I never get to spend enough time on things. So, by stripping my life down to the bare essentials I am able to take a heap load of pressure off myself and hopefully be successful. YAY. So without further-a-do. 

Goals:

1. Improve my German.

2. Make life-long friends.

3. Know myself better.

4. Travel.

Fears:

1. Not making a significant improvement in German.

2. Loneliness.

3. Hating my job.

4. Having no money.

Action Plan:

1. Read one German novel a month. (I think this is a 

very achievable task. It's long enough to finish but short enough that

I can finish a few during my time here)

2. Buy a newspaper every other day.

(great for language and general culture)

3. Learn 15 new words a day (AT LEAST!)

4. Wake up to German radio.

5. Be a bold socialiser. (this sounds ridiculous,

but what I mean is if a conversation is possible, then I need to

do whatever it takes to make it happen!)

One another thing I have learnt since being in Germany, is that I need to take this year one day at a time. If I think about the long-term I freak out and get hit with a shovel of doubt. Yet if I look at the day and assess what can be achieved, what words can be learnt, which people can be spoken to, then everything begins to feel a lot more manageable and I live more in the moment, which is another thing I am aspiring to do. Once again, I intend for this blog to keep me accountable so be prepared for weekly video updates on my favourite German words of the week...I'm not even kidding.

Der Ersten Tag (The First Day)

   

I have arrived! I can't quite believe that the year abroad is finally underway. Phew, exciting. Today I I wandered the streets of the city, trying to orientate my self and get accustomed to the alien, yetfamiliar chatter of the passers by. My aural senses were treated to a wonderful mix-tape created by my friend back home, which was the perfect soundtrack to a late summer morning spent on a plethora of transportation and drinking a variety of different coffees. The very last photo is of the theatre where I will be working as of tomorrow morning. It's such an exciting place and I'm really looking forward to working there. I have spent the afternoon looking up pay-as-you-go phone tariffs, drinking sparkling water and making a list of projects that will improve my language skills. All very useful and all very exciting. More on the latter tomorrow. Bis bald!